No Hearing Needed If Attorney Defaults On Maryland Bar Charges

A one-year suspension was imposed by the Maryland Court of Appeals for neglect and related violations

This attorney discipline proceeding involves a lawyer who failed to diligently represent a client, failed to adequately communicate with the client, failed to take steps to protect the client’s interests after the lawyer’s representation ended, failed to respond to Bar Counsel’s numerous lawful demands for information, and engaged in conduct that was prejudicial to the administration of justice.

 Terrance Venable, Jr. (“Venable”) retained Jerome P. Johnson (“Johnson”), Respondent, a member of the Bar of Maryland, to represent him in a child support case in the Circuit Court for Anne Arundel County (“the circuit court”). Despite having advised in open court at a hearing before a magistrate that he would enter his appearance in the child support case, Johnson neither filed his appearance with the circuit court’s Civil Department nor paid the appearance fee. After the hearing, the magistrate issued a Report and Recommendations, and Venable asked Johnson to file exceptions. Johnson agreed to do so, and charged an additional fee for the exceptions. Johnson failed to timely file the exceptions; instead, he mailed the exceptions to the circuit court on or after the due date. The circuit court closed the child support case, and the Civil Department returned the exceptions to Johnson. Johnson did not make any attempt to rectify the consequences of his failure to file his appearance or pay the appearance fee, such as refunding the fee for the exceptions. Johnson did not inform Venable that he had failed to pay the appearance fee, that he had mailed the exceptions late, and that the circuit court’s Civil Department had returned the exceptions. Additionally, Johnson failed to respond to Venable’s requests for updates about the child support case. Venable ultimately filed a complaint against Johnson with Bar Counsel.

 A significant court ruling on default in bar proceedings

Where Bar Counsel offers no evidence or a small amount of evidence and then rests, the hearing judge is not obligated to seek additional evidence from Bar Counsel. Indeed, where an order of default has been entered in a case and not vacated, the hearing judge may accept the averments in the Petition for Disciplinary or Remedial Action as admitted and is not obligated to conduct a hearing. Maryland Rule 2-323(e) provides: “Averments in a pleading to which a responsive pleading is required . . . are admitted unless denied in the responsive pleading or covered by a general denial.” We reaffirm that which was stated in Thomas, 440 Md. at 550, 103 A.3d at 645, that a hearing judge takes unnecessary action in conducting “a full-blown evidentiary hearing” in light of the existence of an order of default. We now unequivocally hold that a hearing judge in an attorney discipline proceeding may refrain from conducting an evidentiary hearing where the hearing judge has entered an order of default that has not been vacated.

 Sanction

We conclude that the appropriate sanction for Johnson’s misconduct is a one-year suspension from the practice of law in Maryland. Johnson’s misconduct in representing Venable demonstrated a pattern of neglect and non-responsiveness; Johnson failed to diligently represent Venable, failed to adequately communicate with Venable, falsely advised Venable that a motion for reconsideration had been filed in the child custody case when it had not, and failed to take steps to protect Venable’s interests after Johnson’s representation ended. Among the many troubling aspects of Johnson’s various instances of misconduct were his repeated failures to respond to Bar Counsel’s numerous lawful demands for information. It took two letters from Bar Counsel and an extension for Johnson to provide a response to Venable’s complaint, and Johnson never responded to any of Bar Counsel’s six letters requesting documents and additional information. Johnson’s misconduct is aggravated by six factors, including refusal to acknowledge his misconduct’s wrongful nature and indifference to making restitution or rectifying his misconduct’s consequences. Johnson’s misconduct injured Venable by causing the circuit court to close the child support case without considering the exceptions to the magistrate’s Report and Recommendations, and is mitigated only by the absence of prior attorney discipline…

In this case, Johnson’s misconduct was serious, demonstrated a significant disregard for his obligations to his client and Bar Counsel, and merits a sanction that is severe enough to deter similar misconduct in the future. A one-year suspension is commensurate with Johnson’s misconduct, and will protect the public by deterring Johnson and other lawyers from engaging in similar misconduct in the future.

Judge Watts authored the opinion.  (Mike Frisch)